My Beliefs

Wow!!!! I am astounded by what the future brings for me as a teacher and my students. The technology these articles and videos describe used to seem like Star Trek, way out there, but they are now a reality. The article on the new WWW was incredible. I think the possibility of every student having a personal device would be slim but lets pretend they do and step into the classroom to see what is happening. Johnny is getting an announcement on his pda telling him he is being checked out from school. Sally is on virtual reality with the author of Dr. Suess finding out how he illustrates his stories. Jane is paying for her lunch with funds on her pda. The class has library time. The library is on their pda's. All of the books are electronic and can be easily downloaded. Mark needs to use the bathroom. I take his biometric fingerprint for our electronic hall pass. Could this all be a reality? We know the students are ready for it. Are we ready for it?

I have mixed feeling about the extent of this technology. I think this technology could be used with some definate rules in place. I have seen students bring technology to school and use it when they shouldn't. Students text and use facebook when they should be paying attention. Yes, technology can be a distraction but educators should figure out a way to make it work because it will bring a whole new level of learning. As an educator my goal is to help my students learn in an engaging way. I know students coming out of a classroom where they can use these tools think learning is fun. When learning is fun students want to be a part of it. It brings out the creativity in them and it helps them become problem solvers. This world is full of problems so this is a vital topic for students to learn. In reality I am not sure if public school will ever use the full extent of technology. Someone may have to come out with a charter school or private school to integrate all technology that is possible. In a perfect world if I had access to and was allowed to use these technologies, you would find them in my classroom.